Antisthenes ... was asked on one occasion what learning was the most necessary, and he replied, "To unlearn one's bad habits."

I have enough to eat till my hunger is stayed, to drink till my thirst is sated; to clothe myself withal; and out of doors not Callias there, with all his riches, is more safe than I from shivering; and when I find myself indoors, what warmer shirting do I need than my bare walls? what ampler greatcoat than the tiles above my head?

One should attend to one's enemies, for they are the first persons to detect one's errors.

When he was asked what advantage had accrued to him from philosophy, his answer was, "The ability to hold converse with myself."

There is no work so mean, but it would amply serve me to furnish me with sustenance.

The investigation of the meaning of words is the beginning of education.

Virtue is the same for a man and for a woman.

States are doomed when they are unable to distinguish good men from bad.

To all my friends without distinction I am ready to display my opulence: come one, come all; and whosoever likes to take a share is welcome to the wealth that lies within my soul.

I'd rather be mad than feel pleasure.

Count all wickedness foreign and alien.

As iron is eaten away by rust, so the envious are consumed by their own passion.

Mind is infinite and self-ruled, and is mixed with nothing, but is alone itself by itself.

Thought is something limitless and independent, and has been mixed with no thing but is alone by itself. ... What was mingled with it would have prevented it from having power over anything in the way in which it does. ... For it is the finest of all things and the purest.

The Greeks follow a wrong usage in speaking of coming into being and passing away; for nothing comes into being or passes away, but there is mingling and separation of things that are. So they would be right to call coming into being mixture, and passing away separation.

The sun provides the moon with its brightness.

Wrongly do the Greeks suppose that aught begins or ceases to be; for nothing comes into being or is destroyed; but all is an aggregation or secretion of pre-existent things: so that all-becoming might more correctly be called becoming-mixed, and all corruption, becoming-separate.

All things were together, infinite both in number and in smallness; for the small too was infinite.

And since these things are so, we must suppose that there are contained many things and of all sorts in the things that are uniting, seeds of all things, with all sorts of shapes and colours and savours.

Satisfaction linked with dishonor or with harm to others is a prison for the seeker.

With a malicious man carry on no conflict, and do not molest him in any way whatever.

By Thy perfect Intelligence, O MazdaThou didst first create us having bodies and spiritual consciences,And by Thy Thought gave our selves the power of thought, word, and deed.Thus leaving us free to choose our faith at our own will.

Indulge in no wrathfulness, for a man when he indulges in wrath becomes then forgetful of his duty and good works . . . and sin and crime of every kind occur unto his mind, and until the subsiding of the wrath he is said to be just like Ahareman.

Truth is best (of all that is) good. As desired, what is being desired is truth for him who (represents) the best truth.

In forming a store of good works thou shouldst be diligent, so that it may come to thy assistance among the spirits.

May we be those who shall heal this world.

With a greedy man thou shouldst not be a partner, and do not trust him with the leadership.

He who upholds Truth with all the might of his power, He who upholds Truth the utmost in his word and deed,He, indeed, is Thy most valued helper, O Mazda Ahura!

Suffer no anxiety, for he who is a sufferer of anxiety becomes regardless of enjoyment of the world and the spirit, and contraction happens to his body and soul.

Unto Thee, O Lord, the Soul of Creation cried: "For whom didst Thou create me, and who so fashioned me? Feuds and fury, violence and the insolence of might have oppressed me; None have I to protect me save Thee; Command for me then the blessings of a settled, peaceful life."

Thou shouldst not become presumptuous through much treasure and wealth; for in the end it is necessary for thee to leave all.

I will now tell you who are assembled here the wise sayings of Mazda, the praises of Ahura and the hymns of the Good Spirit, the sublime truth which I see rising out of these flames. You shall therefore harken to the Soul of Nature. Contemplate the beams of fire with a most pious mind. Every one, both men and women, ought to-day to choose his creed. Ye offspring of renowned ancestors, awake to agree with us. So preached Zoroaster, the proph of the Parsis, in one of his earliest sermons nearly 3,500 years ago.

With an ill-famed man form no connection.

He who abhors and shuns the light of the Sun, He who refuses to behold with respect the living creation of God, He who leads the good to wickedness, He who makes the meadows waterless and the pastures desolate, He who lets fly his weapon against the innocent, An enemy of my faith, a destroyer of Thy principles is he, O Lord!

Commit no lustfulness, so that harm and regret may not reach thee from thine own actions.

Thus to the Lord doth Asha, the Truth, reply:"No guide is known who can shelter the world from woe, None who knows what moves and works Thy lofty plans."

Thou shouldst not become presumptuous through great connections and race; for in the end thy trust is on thine own deeds.

Purity is for man, next to life, the greatest good that parity is procured by the Law of Mazda to him who cleanses his own self with Good Thoughts, Words, and Deeds.

With an ignorant man thou shouldst not become a confederate and associate.

A reflective, contented mind is the best possession.

Bear no improper envy, so that thy life may not become tasteless.

Hearken with your ears to these best counsels,Reflect upon them with illumined judgment.Let each one choose his creed with that freedom of choice each must have at great events.

Thou shouldst not become presumptuous through life; for death comes upon thee at last, and the perishable part falls to the ground.

Make thyself pure, 0 righteous man! Anyone in the world here below can win purity for himself, namely, when he cleanses himself with Good Thoughts, Good Words, and Good Deeds.

With a foolish man make no dispute.

The resolute one who moved by the principles of Thy FaithExtends the prosperity of order to his neighbors And works the land the evil now hold desolate, Earns through Righteousness, the Blessed Recompense Thy Good Mind has promised in Thy Kingdom of Heaven.

Practice no sloth, so that the duty and good work, which it is necessary for thee to do, may not remain undone.

In the beginning there were two primal spirits,Twins spontaneously active,These are the Good and the Evil, in thought, and in word, and in deed.

Commit no slander; so that infamy and wickedness may not happen unto thee.

With a drunken man do not walk on the road.